Presidents Lose In Las Vegas Opener 65-53
LAS VEGAS, Nev. -- Cory Nickel drilled 10 three-pointers to help Wisconsin-Oshkosh defeat Washington & Jefferson 65-53 in the first-ever men's basketball meeting between the two teams on Thursday evening at the Las Vegas Hoopla at the Centennial Hills Center.
Nickel made 10-of-17 shots from three-point range to finish with a game-high 34 points. Nickel is the second player to make 10 triples against the Presidents this season, joining Doug Smith of Westminster, who also canned 10-of-17 three-pointers on Nov. 28 at the Henry Memorial Center.
The Titans (4-5) held the Presidents to one basket in the first 7:44 and jumped out to an 11-3 lead. Nickel's basket at the 10:21 mark stretched the lead to double digits and an 8-0 run during the final five minutes of the half gave UWO a 33-16 cushion at the break. The lead never dipped below double digits in the second half after reaching as high as 20 in the opening minutes.
W&J (3-8) never recovered from 5-of-25 shooting in the first half as the Presidents shot 31 percent overall (17-of-54). Senior guard Zach Bellhy (McDonald, Pa./Fort Cherry) led the Presidents with 22 points (8-of-16), six rebounds and two blocks. No other President scored more than five points.
Wisconsin-Oshkosh finished with a 44-37 edge on the glass and shot 39 percent overall (23-of-59). Andre Wallace was the only other Titan in double figures with 10 points and nine rebounds.
Washington & Jefferson plays its second game of the Las Vegas Hoopla tomorrow night when taking on Occidental (Calif.) at 9:00 pm EST.
